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jugglingpup's review against another edition
4.0
To see more reviews check out MI Book Reviews.
I have been on a Fannie Flagg kick so I picked up all of her books that the library had, which just happened to be all of them but a small handful. This is the first book in the Elmwood Springs series.
The plot of this book jumps between Elmwood Springs and New York City to follow the family (Norma and Macky) and the main character (Dena). Dena is a working woman who is making her way by working as an interviewer on the news. She is the best in the business (though she is very easily confused later in the book when she is trying to solve the mystery of the book). She is in therapy first with a typical therapist, then with a badass hypnotherapist. Yet again Fannie Flagg has captured my attention with the smaller characters of black hypnotherapist in the wheelchair and Aunt Elner. To a lesser extent I loved Neighbor Dorothy, Norma, and Macky, but I never felt a connection to Dena. She was too emotionally stunted and pushed everyone away, including the reader.
The twist of the book is that Dena had made an enemy by trying to be a good person. This enemy was a total sleaze. He threatened to reveal that her mother was a Nazi. Dena then tries to find out if her mother really was a Nazi because she hasn’t seen her since she was fifteen or sixteen. This is the main plot of the book that doesn’t happen until the last hundred pages or so. Her first therapist helps her out and tries to get her to date him at the same time (boy this guy tries really hard. I was embarrassed for him by the end). The twist, look away now if you don’t want to be spoiled, is she is part black. Not even a huge part, but maybe a sixteenth or less.
The plot just gets more ridiculous as it describes what happens to Dena’s mother. She cuts her wrists and ankles in a bathtub in Vienna trying to get the small amount she has out of her body (talk about a white person’s solution to the problem). So overall the plot was very much Fannie Flagg. She is great at writing middle class, middle America, small town white people. She is not known to write amazing black characters or race issues. She did do a decent job at writing the black therapist. Fannie Flagg is decent at writing about characters with disabilities, but this is only shown through side characters where there is not a lot of depth.
The writing style was slow and steady. It had a lot of back story as always. I started to count down to finishing the book because it felt like I was living through every year with the characters. So if you are looking for a feel good novel about a small town, turn to Fannie Flagg every time. Though this is not my favorite book by Fannie Flagg, it is still a decent read if you don’t want to think and you only like minimally intense plot lines that don’t raise your heart rate. The huge mystery barely registered as a mystery plot, instead it was more like “OK, Dena take a step forward for once in your life”. I was more annoyed that Dena didn’t know anything about herself than I was excited to find out something about her.
I have been on a Fannie Flagg kick so I picked up all of her books that the library had, which just happened to be all of them but a small handful. This is the first book in the Elmwood Springs series.
The plot of this book jumps between Elmwood Springs and New York City to follow the family (Norma and Macky) and the main character (Dena). Dena is a working woman who is making her way by working as an interviewer on the news. She is the best in the business (though she is very easily confused later in the book when she is trying to solve the mystery of the book). She is in therapy first with a typical therapist, then with a badass hypnotherapist. Yet again Fannie Flagg has captured my attention with the smaller characters of black hypnotherapist in the wheelchair and Aunt Elner. To a lesser extent I loved Neighbor Dorothy, Norma, and Macky, but I never felt a connection to Dena. She was too emotionally stunted and pushed everyone away, including the reader.
The twist of the book is that Dena had made an enemy by trying to be a good person. This enemy was a total sleaze. He threatened to reveal that her mother was a Nazi. Dena then tries to find out if her mother really was a Nazi because she hasn’t seen her since she was fifteen or sixteen. This is the main plot of the book that doesn’t happen until the last hundred pages or so. Her first therapist helps her out and tries to get her to date him at the same time (boy this guy tries really hard. I was embarrassed for him by the end). The twist, look away now if you don’t want to be spoiled, is she is part black. Not even a huge part, but maybe a sixteenth or less.
The plot just gets more ridiculous as it describes what happens to Dena’s mother. She cuts her wrists and ankles in a bathtub in Vienna trying to get the small amount she has out of her body (talk about a white person’s solution to the problem). So overall the plot was very much Fannie Flagg. She is great at writing middle class, middle America, small town white people. She is not known to write amazing black characters or race issues. She did do a decent job at writing the black therapist. Fannie Flagg is decent at writing about characters with disabilities, but this is only shown through side characters where there is not a lot of depth.
The writing style was slow and steady. It had a lot of back story as always. I started to count down to finishing the book because it felt like I was living through every year with the characters. So if you are looking for a feel good novel about a small town, turn to Fannie Flagg every time. Though this is not my favorite book by Fannie Flagg, it is still a decent read if you don’t want to think and you only like minimally intense plot lines that don’t raise your heart rate. The huge mystery barely registered as a mystery plot, instead it was more like “OK, Dena take a step forward for once in your life”. I was more annoyed that Dena didn’t know anything about herself than I was excited to find out something about her.
sharppointysticks's review against another edition
3.0
Work Book Club - Feb 2015
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I knew I wouldn't have time to read this one so I wanted to get the audiobook. Unfortunately the library did not have it and Audible only had the abridged version. I thought the character and plot development was very rushed, but that was probably because it was abridged!
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I knew I wouldn't have time to read this one so I wanted to get the audiobook. Unfortunately the library did not have it and Audible only had the abridged version. I thought the character and plot development was very rushed, but that was probably because it was abridged!
carolynaugustyn's review against another edition
4.0
*3.5 stars*
I enjoy Fannie Flagg's writing- it's lovely and light with some real heartwarming messages. I didn't love this plot as much as I would have hoped, I found the plot twist really out there and felt like a stretch. I didn't like Dena much but the supporting characters make up for the disappointing lead. Highly readable and hard to put down but not my favorite of Flagg's books.
I enjoy Fannie Flagg's writing- it's lovely and light with some real heartwarming messages. I didn't love this plot as much as I would have hoped, I found the plot twist really out there and felt like a stretch. I didn't like Dena much but the supporting characters make up for the disappointing lead. Highly readable and hard to put down but not my favorite of Flagg's books.
novelesque_life's review against another edition
3.0
(1997)
RATING: 3 STARS
A great Fannie Flagg book about a small town and it's quirky townspeople.
(2020)
RATING: 3.5
Once I saw the movie, Fried Green Tomatoes I knew I had to read the book. Since then I have been a fan of Fannie Flagg's novels. I love the quirky characters and the humour mixed with drama. I remember this one being one of my least favourite books by Flagg. At the time I wasn't interested in the 1970s storyline with Dena and the press. Reading this 23 years later, I did enjoy it a bit more. I was more intrigued with the mystery this time, of what happened to Dena's mother. Also, knowing more of American History made it a bit more fun to read. I feel like we didn't get to know some of the other characters well enough. We kind of got more of a superficial look. Knowing this time that it is a series, and we will get to see more of Elmwood, explained why we got a peek at these characters. Overall, this is a great book when you need a lighter read with some heft to it.
RATING: 3 STARS
A great Fannie Flagg book about a small town and it's quirky townspeople.
(2020)
RATING: 3.5
Once I saw the movie, Fried Green Tomatoes I knew I had to read the book. Since then I have been a fan of Fannie Flagg's novels. I love the quirky characters and the humour mixed with drama. I remember this one being one of my least favourite books by Flagg. At the time I wasn't interested in the 1970s storyline with Dena and the press. Reading this 23 years later, I did enjoy it a bit more. I was more intrigued with the mystery this time, of what happened to Dena's mother. Also, knowing more of American History made it a bit more fun to read. I feel like we didn't get to know some of the other characters well enough. We kind of got more of a superficial look. Knowing this time that it is a series, and we will get to see more of Elmwood, explained why we got a peek at these characters. Overall, this is a great book when you need a lighter read with some heft to it.
celery's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content, Medical trauma, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Classism, Cursing, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, War, Vomit, Abandonment, Alcohol, Mental illness, Pregnancy, Suicide, Blood, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Eating disorder, Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Grief, Fatphobia, Racism, Antisemitism, Car accident, Gore, Hate crime, Murder, and Stalking
becky_hubbard's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Suicide, Racism, Alcohol, Racial slurs, and Death
gelainmariaelena's review
emotional
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
sonia_reppe's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this story because I really cared about the character of Dena, an up-and-coming news person/interviewer in 1970's NYC who struggles with issues of integrity in a cut-throat business that is turning ever sensational and tawdry. There is something sad at her core, having to do with her mom (her dad was killed in WWII), but Dena is good-hearted. Even though she is becoming famous and popular, she is a loner. Her ulcer finally forces her to deal with things in her past. This is my first Fannie Flagg novel--now I know she is good at writing a deep, well-drawn character.
The sensational direction of the media Dena finds herself in, is contrasted with scenes from a 1940's radio show from Elmwood Springs, Missouri, which is where Dena lived as a young child.
The third part of this book tore my heart out! The chapter titled "Christmas, Chicago, 1959" is one of the saddest things I've ever read!!!
Even though things got heart-breakingly sad, and dramatic in the last third of this book (maybe even a bit melodramatic), I liked the end. I know it will be so memorable to me.
The sensational direction of the media Dena finds herself in, is contrasted with scenes from a 1940's radio show from Elmwood Springs, Missouri, which is where Dena lived as a young child.
The third part of this book tore my heart out! The chapter titled "Christmas, Chicago, 1959" is one of the saddest things I've ever read!!!
Even though things got heart-breakingly sad, and dramatic in the last third of this book (maybe even a bit melodramatic), I liked the end. I know it will be so memorable to me.
bogfinchgirl's review against another edition
3.0
It was a good book, although I didn’t like it as much as The All Girl Filling Station. I wish there had been more clues to figure out Dena’s mother mystery. I got to the end where that was all laid out and thought “Huh, that’s really interesting, but no way I would have guessed this or even had some sort of incline.” I did like the characters from Elmwood Springs, Missouri and would have liked them to be a larger part of the story. If you like Fannie Flag, you’ll like this book.
bethgiven's review against another edition
3.0
I was glad when our book club picked a Fannie Flagg book; I've been meaning to read one ever since my sister-in-law recommended the author.
For all the talk I'd heard about how Flagg's characters were what sold the book, I was surprised at how well I liked the plot: so many varied storylines, from different places and times, are all woven together at the end to one cohesive tale.
Of course, the characters truly are delightful, too, especially the residents of Elmwood Springs (Aunt Elner reminded me a bit of my grandmother, a lifelong resident of Missouri herself; I loved how they'd talk endlessly of the meals they ate -- I can relate!).
Yes, I was really loving the book and its characters by the end; I found myself snatching bits of it whenever I could throughout the day (and it was nice that the book was subdivided into very short chapters, making this the perfect pick-up-and-read book).
That said, the beginning was really rough to read. There were a couple of characters who were rather prominent in the first hundred pages that swore like sailors, and it really bothered me -- I was tempted to put the book down a few times, not to be picked up again. I suppose it was a pretty effective way to demonstrate the scumminess of these particular characters, but yeah, it was almost too much for me ... so proceed with caution.
For all the talk I'd heard about how Flagg's characters were what sold the book, I was surprised at how well I liked the plot: so many varied storylines, from different places and times, are all woven together at the end to one cohesive tale.
Of course, the characters truly are delightful, too, especially the residents of Elmwood Springs (Aunt Elner reminded me a bit of my grandmother, a lifelong resident of Missouri herself; I loved how they'd talk endlessly of the meals they ate -- I can relate!).
Yes, I was really loving the book and its characters by the end; I found myself snatching bits of it whenever I could throughout the day (and it was nice that the book was subdivided into very short chapters, making this the perfect pick-up-and-read book).
That said, the beginning was really rough to read. There were a couple of characters who were rather prominent in the first hundred pages that swore like sailors, and it really bothered me -- I was tempted to put the book down a few times, not to be picked up again. I suppose it was a pretty effective way to demonstrate the scumminess of these particular characters, but yeah, it was almost too much for me ... so proceed with caution.